Cambodia: National action plan on indigenous rights among measures needed to improve human rights, says expert

“There should be a one stop-service to help these communities in their quest for indigenous rights,” said the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia, Vitit Muntarbhorn, at the end of his third official visit to the country.

The independent expert commended Cambodia for recognising in law the notion of indigenous peoples and their rights, but a national action plan was crucial. “There is a need for a national forum or working group to enable them to dialogue with authorities, with concomitant budgeting,” he said in a statement. (link)* 

Muntarbhorn was in the country to review progress on implementation of the 10-point Cambodian Human Rights Action Agenda   he presented in 2022, to improve the human rights situation, open up civil and political space and pave the way for democratic reform.

During his six-day mission, the Special Rapporteur met with local government officials in Ratanakiri and Kandal provinces, with a focus on indigenous peoples. “Social awareness on indigenous peoples can also be nurtured through more education on their culture, as well as possibly a national and or international festival on indigenous arts and culture.” 

The UN expert met with communities affected by encroachments on their ancestral land and unbalanced development , and he also visited prisons. He noted the efforts of the authorities to support alternative methods of dispute resolution, as well as to reduce overcrowding in prison. 

“I urge Cambodia to comply with international human rights law and work towards more non-custodial and community-based measures, coupled with reform of the law enforcement system, and improved quality of the judiciary and related law enforcers,” he said. “There should be more access to legal aid and members of civil society as helpers to open space for accused persons and detainees, with support geared to empathy rather than retribution.”

The Special Rapporteur said political opponents continue to be detained, and human rights advocates and environmentalists continue to be prosecuted for incitement and related offences in exercising their right to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and their quest for justice.  

Muntarbhorn also called on the Government to reform the infamous law on associations and non-governmental organisations (“LANGO”), which imposes constraining conditions on the work of civil society. “Imposing the litany of laws, policies and practices of a restrictive kind impedes the broader stakeholdership, and in the quest to reform them, the authorities should desist from applying them expeditiously.”

The expert’s fourth report on the situation of human rights in Cambodia will be released in September 2024.

ENDS

Professor Vitit Muntarbhorn was appointed as the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Cambodia in March 2021. Professor Vitit is a Thai law Professor with longstanding experience working pro bono for the UN on human rights. He has helped the UN in a variety of positions, including as former UN Special Rapporteur on the Sale of Children, former UN Special Rapporteur on the Democratic People Republic of Korea, former UN Independent Expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, former Chairperson of the UN appointed Commission of Inquiry on the Ivory Coast, and former member of the UN appointed Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic.

Professor Vitit is a Professor Emeritus at the Faculty of Law, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok. He is a graduate of Oxford University (M.A.,B.C.L. (Oxon.) and Universite Libre de Bruxelles (Licence Speciale en Droit Europeen (Brux.)). He is also a Barrister at Law (the Middle Temple, London). For several years, Professor Vitit Co-Chaired the Working Group for an ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism. He has published widely on International Law, Human Rights, International Humanitarian Law, and Law and Development. He is the recipient of a number of awards, including the 2004 UNESCO Human Rights Education Prize. He was bestowed a Knighthood (KBE) in 2018.

The Special Rapporteurs, Independent Experts and Working Groups are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.

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*(https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/countries/cambodia/statements/20240726-eom-sr-cambodia.docx)